localhorrornerd

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woah its been a while since ive been active on this blog i did not expect this many notifs suddenly

perhaps i should start doing things again on it

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A Guide to the Ju-On/Grudge Franchise

I spent a lot of time thinking one what to make my first list on here be before deciding what better than a guide to franchise I love that can be fairly complicated for those just trying to get into it without any help. For the record you’re really not required to watch all of these in the order I give or anything, just thought it’d be helpful!

A Quick Introduction

Ju-On is a series that mostly centers around the Saeki family: Kayako, her husband Takeo, and their son Toshio. Most of the lore establishes Kayako had fallen madly in love with a man (Shunsuke Kobayashi in The Curse, Peter Kirk in The Grudge [American remake]), eventually leading to Takeo finding out and him brutally murdering Kayako along with their pet cat and Toshio (though in some versions instead of Takeo who killed Toshio it was Kayako’s spirit). Toshio’s spirit fused with the cat’s in a way, therefore leading to the meowing sound Toshio is known to make. This also falls into Kayako’s death rattle sound, as Takeo snapped her neck/crushed her throat, therefore making it so she could only make that noise.

Takeo kills at least one other person (not stated here to avoid too many spoilers), before he is the one of the first claimed by the curse, the one which he created.

Now anyone who steps into the house or interacts with those who have gone into the house are now made to suffer the curse and ultimately be killed by Kayako, with no way to escape it.

The Ju-On Films

It’s only natural to start with the Ju-On films, as that’s where it all began clearly! And where it truly began was with two short films:

Katasumi/In A Corner (watch: here)

444-444-4444 (watch: here)

These short films introduce you to the characters of Kayako and Toshio Saeki. The characters in these short films also are a bit important as well, as you can see them in the actual first move in the franchise. Fun fact! These two shorts were actually part of a tv anthology movie called Gakko no Kaidan G ! Though the other segments are not connected to Ju-On at all.

Which leads us to those first two movies:

Ju-On: The Curse

Ju-On: The Curse 2

These movies aren’t really well known about for those in America or similar places I imagine, and that’s because they’re pretty hard to find as far as I know. But they are definitely worth watching! Though it is important to note part of Ju-On: The Curse 2 is essentially just a continuation of Ju-On: The Curse.

After that is the two everyone knows:

Ju-On: The Grudge

Ju-On: The Grudge 2

It admittedly does get complicated considering the 2 in the name, but these are actually the third and fourth movies in the series. However, nothing to fear if you’ve watched these already first - given the fact the only really continuous characters are the Saekis there’s no really required order to watch these first four in (though I wouldn’t suggest watching The Curse 2 before The Curse).

This is where it gets a bit complicated, as the next two movies aren’t actually connected to the Saeki family at all:

Ju-On: White Ghost

Ju-On: Black Ghost

White Ghost and Black Ghost are sort of its own little stories, made to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Ju-On films. White Ghost centering around a spirit and for specific reasons a basketball it carries and Black Ghost centering around a young girl and the spirit that is connected to her somehow. You can watch these at any time, there really is no specific order, or you don’t even have to watch them if you don’t wish to. However, I have to give a content warning for White Ghost for covering topics of sexual abuse.

These next two you can consider almost a reboot of sorts, and the first two that have zero involvement from Takashi Shimizu:

Ju-On: The Beginning of the End

Ju-On: The Final Curse

It still follows the curse of the Saeki family and the original formula, but the story itself does change in a way. Though I won’t give any details to how it changes obviously.

There’s one other Ju-On film to speak of currently, though I’m not sure if you can really count it as a Ju-On film:

Sadako vs. Kayako

Not to much to say here - it’s a crossover film between Ring and Ju-On. It’s, as of this post being made, currently the most recent film with anything pertaining to Ju-On.

Ju-On: Origins

This one supposedly tells the “true story” of what happened to create the story behind Ju-On, so while Kayako and Toshio are not present, there are two similar characters. It’s only 6 thirty minute long episodes, so it’s a pretty quick watch. Note: This series has a lot of triggering content (such as: suicide, abuse, sexual assault, gore), so watch at your own risk.

The Grudge Films

Finally, we make it to the American films. Of course, if you’re just looking to watch the Ju-On films there’s no need to watch these, but it’s important to include them I believe. I also must note the first two American Grudge films were done by the original Japanese director/creator, Takashi Shimizu.

Not too much to note, I’ll just list them in order here:

The Grudge

The Grudge 1.5 (promotional graphic novel/animated short film for second film, found here)

The Grudge 2

Tales from the Grudge (three short films, watch here)

The Grudge 3

Grudge (2020)

As far as Tales from the Grudge goes though, it’s three short films by the names of Hotel, School, and House in that order (small warning for flashing lights in the House short though). 

That’s all there is in terms of movies, however if you’re interested in other things there is also:

Ju-On: The Grudge (Wii Video Game)

The Novel for Ju-On

Ju-On: Video Side & Ju-On 2/Ju-On Vol. 2 (Manga)

Flash Games for The Grudge & The Grudge 2

And there you have it! A hopefully easy to understand guide to the Ju-On films!

[localhorrornerd]

A Guide to the Ringu/Ring Films

This one was very hard to put together as there is just so much Ring content out there, so hopefully I’ve got everything here, and if not, I’m sure this guide will have to be updated later on anyway!

A Quick Introduction

Ringu/Ring is a series that centers around Sadako Yamamura (aka Samara Morgan & Park Eun-suh) and a cursed video that causes all who watch it to die within seven days (or in one version, two days). Sadako’s backstory varies from entry to entry in the franchise, but it is generally portrayed that she had some sort of psychic powers before she died, partially leading to how the curse works.

Ring originally started out as a series of novels written by Koji Suzuki before it was adapted as a tv movie in 1995, then followed up by an actual theatrical movie in 1998.

The Japanese Ring Films

As stated, the first actual Ring movie is a 1995 tv movie.

Ring: Kanzenban (1995)

This adaptation follows the original story of the novel, so there’s many differences to the version that we know now, but Sadako is still a part of the story. It’s certainly worth a watch if you’re interested in the novels.

Now this is where things become a bit more confusing. At some point with the Japanese films they sort of split into four categories: the ones that follow director Hideo Nakata’s timeline, the ones that follow the book timeline, the ones that follow both timelines, and the versus films. 

Both Timelines

Ring (1998)

Ring 0: Birthday (2000)

Ring/Ringu is obviously the movie we know today, that is very beloved. While it partially follows the books, it also has Hideo Nakata’s personal touches to it, that you’ll sort of see no matter what timeline you look at. Ring 0, however, is an origin story, and gives you a look into Sadako’s life before she died while she was a part of a theater troupe. It’s extremely tragic, and one of my personal favorites. 

Hideo Nakata Timeline

Ring 2 (1999)

Sadako (2019)

As implied, these two movies follow Hideo Nakata’s storyline, and are also two other movies in the franchise directed by him. Would recommend these two if you want to see a continuation of the story from the characters in the first film.

Rasen Timeline

Spiral/Rasen (1998)

Sadako 3D (2012)

Sadako 3D 2 (2013)

So here’s the interesting thing about Spiral/Rasen, it was actually released at the exact same time as the original 1998 movie. However, there ended up being much more interest in Ring rather than Spiral, so it quickly flopped upon release and is why we saw another sequel to Ring come out the next year. Though there was certainly some interest in it, as the Sadako 3D movies were released in 2012 and 2013. While these follow different characters, they still have ties back to the ones from Spiral, and follow the books to some extent.

Versus Films

Hikiko-san vs Sadako (2015)

Sadako vs Kayako (2016)

Bunshinsaba vs Sadako (2016)

Bunshinsaba vs Sadako 2 (2017)

Basically, a bunch of movies portraying Sadako fighting other ghosts from Japanese/Chinese media. Each one is vastly different, but definitely fun if you’re into seeing that sort of thing! Note: at this time I am unable to find a translated version of the first Bunshinsaba vs Sadako movie, however, it won’t be an issue to watch the second as I was able to watch it easily without knowing the plot of the first (if you can find a translated version though, feel free to inform me!) Note: the Bunshinsaba vs Sadako films are actually Chinese movies, but since i was covering the vs films here, I felt it’d be best to just add it rather than making a whole different category.

The TV Series

Ring: The Final Chapter (1999)

Rasen (1999)

The last bit of Ring media we have to cover in Japan, Ring actually got a tv series with two seasons, one with 12 episodes and the other with 13 - the episodes running about 45 minutes each. Though I have not seen it yet so I can’t give great detail, it’s said to loosely be based off the novel along with the 1998 Ring film.

Updates

since making this of course more Ring media has came out, so any updates i will add as they come along

Sadako DX (2022) - haven’t seen it myself yet, but it’s stated to be a sequel to Spiral (1998)

The Ring Virus Film

A quick extra stop before we get to the American films, The Ring Virus (1999) is a South Korean remake of both the 1998 Ring movie, but also Ring: Kanzenban to an extent as well. It borrows many elements from both, and instead of Sadako we have Park Eun-suh as our cursed ghost this time. While I wouldn’t say it adds really anything new to the series, still worth the watch if you want to see all of the Ring movies.

The American Ring Films

The Ring (2002)

The Ring Two (2005)

Rings (2017)

I don’t think much needs to be said here. The Ring was a very popular remake in America and is what is credited for starting the J-Horror remake phase over here. The popularity caused for two current sequels to be made, one even directed by Hideo Nakata himself (The Ring Two). Obviously it’s a much more Americanized version of the series, with Sadako this time being replaced with Samara Morgan, which unlike herself in both the Japanese and Korean films, is a child, which adds a lot to how Samara’s story is played out differently from Sadako’s. 

Other Media

If you’re looking for other media pertaining to the Ring Franchise, here’s some for you:

The Ring novel series by Koji Suzuki (consisting of 6 books: Ring, Spiral, Loop, Birthday, S & Tide)

The manga series (consisting of 6 different volumes all following different movies)

The Ring: Terror’s Realm (Dreamcast Game)

Rings (2005 short film)

Various other mangas and comics by different authors (Sadako-san and Sadako-chan, Sadako at the End of the World, Sadako)

And there you have it! A hopefully helpful guide to the Ringu/Ring franchise! Of course, new stuff will be added as time passes.

[localhorrornerd]

Hiroki Dan (Brutal: Satsujin Kansatsukan no Kokuhaku) icons

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Random clothes of Tomie

Part 2 [click for better quality]

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Okay, guys, you don’t all have to call him out at once-

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♡ ♡ Genderfluid Frank Morrison icons requested by anonymous (please reblog if you save)! ♡ ♡

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rip to brian stells you would’ve loved miitopia

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im having way too much fun with these

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so i made a dumb quiz

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As an apology for the lack of artwork, here’s Yuuma Azawa from Junji Ito’s “Dissolving Classroom”.

[localhorrornerd]

Dissolving classroom was a fun read

[localhorrornerd]

i started to play dbd and i still know hardly anything about the game besides the fact that i like the kpop pretty boy. ALSO HIS TRAILER IS SO SEXY I KEEP WATCHING IT HEHHSJJ

(these are just stupid doodles please pay no mind)

[localhorrornerd]

It’s also permanent so you’ll never have to worry about them again (unless if you’re a horrible conductor that is...)!

This is heavily inspired by all the shitty beauty ads from “real doctors” I’ve seen. Also it’s my first actual comic and I’m pretty proud of it!

[localhorrornerd]

Psycho Gorman seeing the hunky boys:

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Psycho Goreman (2021)

[localhorrornerd]

PG: Psycho Goreman (2021) dir. Steven Kostanski